A Demon Made Me Do It (31 page)

The other two hounds continue lunging
at Jax, apparently unaware of what has happened. Kieron races over
to the fallen beast and retrieves my dagger. He hands it back to
me. “Kill the other ones…” He sprints back to pick up the fallen
Otium torch, using its bright flame to set fire to the stunned
animal.

My eyes shift from Bones to Jax. One
of Jax’s attackers turns and spots Bones pinning its comrade, and
instantly guns for him. “No!” I scream, before letting the dagger
fly again. It hits the charging beast mid-air squarely in the
forehead, knocking it back. Kieron races over with the torch, yanks
out my dagger, and engulfs the hound in flames.

Bones drops the wounded dog from his
deadly grip, and leaps over to where Jax lies squirming and bloody
beneath the last remaining hound. He jumps on its back and sinks
his teeth in the animal’s neck. The hound lets out an anguished cry
and crumples to its side. Bones furiously paws, claws and bites,
ripping the flesh to shreds until there is nothing left but
bloodied fur.

After Kieron finishes setting fire to
the remaining creatures—including the blonde leader—he jogs to
where Bones and I are standing over Jax’s body. In death, he has
shifted back to the form of a man.

“
Stupid fool,” I mutter.
Kieron comes to stand beside me, and Bones, still in hound form,
lies at my feet. I reach down to pet him and he whimpers. I pull
back, surprised by the dampness in my hands.

Blood…Bones is soaked with it. But how
much is his? And how much came from the other creatures?

I wait for Bones to shift back, but he
doesn’t. Instead, he stands on four wobbly legs and limps
away.

“
Kieron look, he’s hurt.”
Kieron leans down to set the torch to Jax’s quiet form. His body
will take longer to decompose, and it’s essential we clear our
tracks and wipe away any evidence of what has transpired. The
Hlbafa will soon realize they are missing five hellhounds, but
without any clues as to what happened, we should be able to
minimize our danger. We have enough to worry about as it
is.

“
I imagine he is,” Kieron
replies, rising. “That was a serious battle, and he’s lucky to have
survived it. You saved his life.”

“
No,
you
did…I was paralyzed just
watching…I didn’t even think to throw my dagger.” I shake my head
and tighten my grip around its handle. No way am I putting it away
until we’re safely back in Dryndara.

“
Suppose that’s why he’s
not shifting back?” he muses. “Perhaps his injuries are too
severe—”

“
No,” I quickly reply. “I’m
sure he’s fine. He’s just staying on guard until he knows we’re
safe.”

“
Then why isn’t he
running?”

I lower my eyes. It’s clear that Bones
is badly wounded, dripping with blood. “We just need to get back to
Dryndara,” I say, as I run up to walk alongside him.

******

“
Lucky, look at him.
Something is definitely wrong.”

I chew my lip nervously and stare down
at Bones. He’s curled up on the ground, somewhere between asleep
and awake. He still hasn’t shifted back, even though we’ve made it
safely back to Dryndara. The three of us are camped out at a small
meadow by the ice-river Valkis.

“
Maybe he’s just tired,” I
say, kneeling beside him. I gently stroke him, and in his sleepy
state he flinches. My hand is covered with blood from several deep
gouges in his side. “This is bad…very bad,” I whisper. “I’ve never
seen him hurt like this before.”

“
It’s because he was
attacked by his own kind. Their powers are stronger against each
other. Naturally he’s never fought with one of his own
here…”

“
I just wish he’d talk to
me…tell me what to do!” I whisper frantically. I can’t help but
notice how dangerously close Illyria’s moons are. My time is
already running out. But even scarier, so is Bones’.

“
Perhaps he’s too weak to
shift…”

I pat his head gently. “Bones…Bones,
can you hear me?”

He lazily opens an eye and lets out a
small whimper.

“
Bones, you have to tell me
what to do…where are you hurt? Is there someone I should get?” I
feel my eyes grow damp. He looks at me groggily and lifts his head
a few inches before dropping it back down again.

“
Bones?” This time it’s
more of a plea. I feel his life force fading, and a panic rises
deep inside me, threatening to consume me entirely. I rest his head
in my lap and pet the side of his face. His breathing is shallow
and labored.

“
It might help him heal if
he could replenish,” Kieron says. “If you want I can run to the Bar
and get him something…”

“
Yes! And
hurry
!” I don’t know who
has less time left—me or Bones. I give Kieron a pleading look as he
jumps on his bike and shoots off into the woods.

“
You’re fine,” I whisper to
Bones, though I’m not sure I believe the words myself. “You’re
gonna be okay. Kieron went to get you something to drink. You’ll be
tip-top in no time.”

Bones rests his head on my
lap and I gently stroke his cheek.
Please,
Bones, please
don’t die
, I plead silently. He’s not supposed to die—ever. It’s not
supposed to be like this. But we were able to finish off the other
hellhounds, and neither Kieron nor I are pure demon. They must have
had mixed blood, even the leader. Although she was clearly part
succubus, she must have had some Sapie blood in there somewhere
since Jax was able to kill her. But maybe the one Bones fought with
and killed was pure…

Bones lets out another soft whimper
and nuzzles his head into my lap. I softly stroke his massive body,
not caring that my hand is covered in blood. I have to squelch the
frustrated rage threatening to boil over inside me. First Kayla and
Michael. Then Ivy and Cody. Now Bones.

Why do the ones I care
about keep dying?

I ignore the tears that stream down my
face, but cannot ignore the ominous disks in the sky merging as
one. It’s almost morning in the Sapie world. Soon I will fall
asleep. Liora might not wake up right away, but she will be in
control. I need Kieron to hurry. I need him to get back here so
Bones can drink and grow strong again. I need to be far away from
them when Liora wakes up.

But I know it’s already too
late. Even running as fast as I could, if I left right this
moment—and there’s no way I’m doing
that
—I’d only make it about halfway
to the cabin.

I can only hope that when Liora
awakens, she’ll have an ounce of compassion for our fallen friend.
After all, she was friends with Bones too, before our split. She
has the same memories of our times together that I have. She knows
every detail of our shared life up until the point the Amazèa
cracked us in half. Although she claims to despise us now, there
was a time when she cared for Bones just as much as I do
now.

I can only hope she does the right
thing.

******

The roar of the approaching engine
sounds just as the first cool waves of weakness flutter through my
body. “Kieron, hurry!”

He leaps off his bike and rushes to my
side, a large flask of green liquid in his hand. “How’s he doing?”
he asks, uncorking the lid.

“
The same, but look…” I
motion with my chin to the sky, my voice faint.

He looks at me with horror
as understanding registers on his face. “Oh,
no
…Liora…she’s coming…”

I nod. “You must stay here,
Kieron. You have to help her. She’ll be afraid, and very upset. You
must take care of her and get her home safely. And
Bones…
please
…save
him…don’t let him die…”

My words fade away as the blackness
seeps in all around me.

Chapter 19.
Liora

I don’t dream…at least I
don’t
think
I do.
If I ever have any weird patches of memories when I awake in the
morning, I always brush them off as Lucky’s. Fortunately, the
thoughts always fade quickly and I don’t have to relive her
nocturnal adventures.

But maybe I’m still
sleeping. It’s dark, mostly. There’s a bright glare on my
face.
Ugh, did Lucky leave the bedroom
light on?

I try to roll over and bury my face in
the pillow.

But there is no pillow, and I feel
like I’m falling….

“
Wha!?”
I wake up with a start.

…
.at least I think I’m
awake. Here’s Kieron, holding me in his arms, gazing upon me with
such love and concern.

Hello,
gorgeous…

I reach up to touch his
face and bring it down to kiss mine.
As
long as I’m dreaming
….

“
Liora.”

With that one word, my eyes come into
focus, and my head clears….only for a moment before it goes into a
terrifying tailspin.

I try to jump up, and it’s only then I
realize that something is in my lap, weighing me down. Something
heavy, ugly. A dead animal? And it’s wet.

“
Liora, don’t move. Do not
be afraid. You’re safe. I have you.” Kieron tightens his grip
around me.

Without thinking, I scream.

“
Shhh…shhhh…don’t be
frightened. I promise; everything will be okay. Just don’t panic.”
Kieron places his hands gently over my mouth. Instantly, I bite
down on his fingers and he grimaces, then reluctantly pulls
back.

“
Liora…”

“
Get it off me! Get it off
me!” I scream and try to squirm away, but I’m trapped by the heavy
weight.

This is a nightmare and I need to wake
up.

“
It’s Bones,” Kieron says
softly. “He’s been badly injured. We need to help him.”

I feel like I’ve just been slapped
across the face with a million tiny daggers. Slowly, I look down at
the bulk in my lap. As comprehension forces its way into my head, I
turn to face Kieron.

The sound oozes out of my
mouth. “
You
…” My
one word accusation speaks volumes.

He dips his head and sighs. “Yes. But
please, whatever you are feeling toward me right now, Bones is your
friend, and he needs our help.”

I can’t catch my breath; I know air is
entering my lungs, yet somehow it isn’t doing any good.

“
Liora, calm down…you’re
going to hyperventilate…” The soothing quality of his voice is
totally lost on me.

“
You…
you
…this whole time…”

He lowers his head. “Liora, we must
get Bones to transform back so he can drink this,” he says holding
up a green flask. “He was badly hurt, and without it he might die.”
His eyes flash azure, and I realize for the first time how deep
they are. Like they could hide the truth behind their
beauty.

“
So, I don’t care. Let him
die,” I whimper, leaning my body away from the beast’s
head.

“
Liora, you don’t mean
that. Bones is your friend—”

“
No, he’s
not
. He’s
her
friend.” I look away.
I can’t stand to meet his eyes. The eyes that lied to
me.

He dips his head trying to look at my
face. “He’s very special to her. She cares for him deeply. Tonight
he was injured, mainly to protect her, I suspect,” he adds under
his breath.

“
So, I don’t care. Get him
off of me.” I push at the dead weight on my lap but can’t budge
it.

But my voice doesn’t carry the same
conviction as before. I gaze down on the wounded animal, and my
chest aches.

Of course I know Bones, and
yes, at one point he
was
my friend. A dear friend. But he’s one of
them
…and they’re all the
same. Just look at what they get themselves into.

“
Where are we?”

“
The far side of Dryndara,
near Valkis River. Have…have you ever been here before?”

I survey the unfamiliar landscape and
shake my head.

“
But, obviously, you’ve
been to Dryndara…”

Slowly I nod. “It-it’s been awhile.
Years.” I look up at the sky. I know the shining yellow disc I’m
seeing isn’t the sun, but the trinity-moons overlapping as one.
It’s daylight at home, yet nighttime here. Forever, eternally
night.

Thiberoux—a place crawling with
monsters and evil. A place that rips my soul out time and time
again. A place I’d hoped and prayed I’d never again see with my
human eyes. Yet here I am.

But it’s also my home. My true home.
The first home I ever had, and the first one I remember. And in my
lap is Bones, the first friend I ever made. I met him long before I
met Michael and Kayla, but he always kept his distance…like a
protective older brother.

He’d told me when I was
older we’d be better friends, but since I was still young, I needed
to play with children my own age. I remember him giving me rides on
his back through the woods as I grasped tightly around his neck. I
remember him speaking to me with his soft, silky voice, explaining
the ways of Dryndara and the specialness of Thiberoux. I remember
him giving me a shiny black diamond when I was five—the first time
I wandered into the forest by my cabin, looking,
searching...seeking something that I
knew
was out there somewhere, just
waiting for me to discover it. I remember how he’d appeared from
behind a tree and presented me with the special diamond…the one
that even now rests at the base of my neck, binding my cloak shut.
I remember how magnificent I thought he was. How powerful, proud,
and beautiful.